06/03/2023
Our therapists Heather and Chris recently attended a workshop with Brian Utting of the Pacific Northwest School of Massage. Here's what Chris had to say:
"After recently attending a course held by Brian Utting, learning a variety of deep tissue techniques for the hips and legs, I’m excited to put my new skills into practice.
I was hesitant at first, thinking it would just be the same things I was taught at massage school. I was glad to be wrong. These techniques (many of which I had never heard of or even considered) showed me ways to address the hip and leg muscles in ways that would be useful to people with pain or mobility limitations in the lower body.
Athletes, in particular, would benefit as now I can treat muscles more effectively than my previous techniques. Likewise, muscles that I had neither the training nor confidence to massage can now be treated.
I previously paid less attention to areas such as the ankle retinaculum (the fascial band that holds the tendons on the front and side of your lower leg in place) or flexor digitorum longus, compared with the bigger muscles like the gastrocnemius or soleus (calf muscles). Now with these techniques I'm able to think of them separately and know how they can be treated to relieve tension and improve performance. I also learned techniques to treat other muscles around the hip and both inner and outer thigh more effectively, which would really benefit runners or cyclists.
Another aspect of the workshop was how to use my body differently to avoid developing aches and pains from providing massage. For me that really means using palms, forearms, and elbows more rather than relying so much on thumbs. There were a variety of alternative techniques for utilizing my body differently to protect myself, and ensure I’ll be able to practice for a long time!"
If you'd like to find out more, or try out these new techniques yourself, click to book in with Chris: https://bookings.gettimely.com/bodyworksmassage/bb/book?staff=482232
